Communications

We often describe Text Request as a way for your businesses to text with consumers just like you text your friends and family. But what exactly does that mean?

Here are 6 examples and case studies to help you understand what we mean by “text like you text your friends.” Let’s dive in!

1. Do you have a minute?

If you’re just checking in with a friend, you might text for the entire conversation. But if there’s something important, or something you need to talk through more thoroughly, you’ll often send a text to set up a call or face-to-face.

Something like, “Hey, give me a shout when you have a minute, please. No rush.”

In this case, text is basically your communications wing man.

The thing is, you can do this will all of your customers, too! A simple text to set up a call is a professional and effective way to communicate with customers and prospects. Here’s an example:

“Hey [John], hoping we can find time to talk today. When are you free?”

This same approach comes in handy in many business situations, particularly in sales. It’s not life or death that you speak with the person right this second, and you’re actually more likely to get a response through text, anyway.

Instead of outright calling, which is likely to be ignored, your text lets people know that you respect their schedule, and gives them an opportunity to set a time that’s more convenient for them.

That’s probably what you’d do for a friend, right?

2. Would you text that to a friend?

Many businesses treat texting like their company email. That’s not good for anyone!

Text messages don’t need the formality, professional signatures, or company logos usually included in emails. Text is a totally separate form of communication. That other stuff is just fluff!

When you text your friends, do you end every message with:

First Name

Last Name

Phone number

Email

Position

And office hours?

Dear heavens, I hope not!

After the first message you send, the recipient knows who they’re texting with. You don’t need to sign off every time! The same goes for company logos.

Would you send the same picture every time you text your friends? Of course not.

The goal of texting for business is to communicate with people how they prefer to communicate. When you try to change that, everyone loses.

3. Why leave a voicemail?

We like to joke that the only people who leave voicemails are moms and salesmen. There’s a lot of truth in it!

For those under 50, it’s common to send a text instead of leaving a voicemail. Besides, if you send a voicemail, it could be hours or days before anyone listens to it, much less calls you back.

When your audience doesn’t answer your calls, hang up and text them. “Hey, call me back when you get a moment, please.” Or “Hey just wanted to let you know [XYZ happened].”

That’s how friends communicate, and that’s how your business can communicate, too. When people don’t answer their phones, leave a text.

4. How formal are you when you text your friends?

Business professionals are often too formal in emails, a characteristic that doesn’t transfer well to texts. For instance, you probably wouldn’t text a friend the following:

“Dear Jennifer,

I’m sorry for the delay in my response. There has been so much going on over here that we’re all backed up. As to your question, yes, we can make that happen. But would you please provide more details so that the person I hand this off to will be on the same page? Thank you.

Best Regards, Sarah”

No! You’d probably text something like:

“Hey Jen, sorry – things are crazy right now. Yes! We can do that. Can you be more specific so I know what to tell the guys? Thanks.”

Even in this simple example, what you would text is half of what you might email!

To text with customers and prospects the same way you text your friends, drop the formality. People want to feel like you’re human, not a robot.

5. How would you follow up with friends?

People see a text within 5 seconds, on average. It’s the quickest way to give someone a heads up, which is exactly what you would do with your friends. Here are a few examples:

“Just emailed you the details for [XYZ].”

“We’ll already be in your neighborhood on [Date]. Would that afternoon work for you?”

“Hey, can you proof the [design] I just emailed you? Thanks!”

“Let me know when you’ve done [ABC], please.”

These are all examples of texting like you text your friends, and they can all be applied to your business communications. Instead of waiting for a response to your email or phone call, shoot off a text!

6. What about confirmations?

Confirming appointments and information might be the most common way to text like you text your friends.

If you’re meeting up with your friends, you’ll probably send a text like one of these.

“Does Tuesday at 12 work for you?”

“Still good for lunch tomorrow?”

And if someone has to cancel last minute, you’ll probably find another time that works through text. In fact, a lot of businesses keep people from cancelling their appointments by rescheduling through text!

In other cases, you need to confirm customer details. Here are some examples.

“Is [Address] still your current address?”

“You ordered [Items], right?”

A third case is when you arrive for an appointment (webinar, phone call, house call, etc.), and your customer isn’t there, or hasn’t provided everything you need.

It could be hours before they see an email. They might ignore a call. But they’ll see your text almost instantly.

“Are we still on for our call?” “We’re at your house, but we need a key.” That’s what you would probably text your friends, and that’s what you can text as a business, too.

Bringing It All Together

All of these examples can be boiled down into one mindset: Instead of being formal, be human.

Be personal, and act like you’re communicating with a real person, because that’s what you’re doing! You can still be respectful and polite without being too formal or robotic.

Texting fits into this mindset, because people will more often opt for a text in place of a call, email, or voicemail.

That’s how we communicate with friends, and that’s how the general public wants to communicate with your business.

How do customer relationships build businesses?

You’ve been there. A problem comes up in your business meeting that needs outside help. So you chime in and say, “I know a guy, I’ll reach out to him when we’re done.”

Or you might suggest a particular brand whose blog posts you’ve read, or whose ads you’ve seen. You recommend a person or brand you’re familiar with, who you feel you can trust.

This is an incredibly powerful phenomenon! And you can use it to your advantage, both to get new customers and to strengthen relationships with existing customers.

I’ll show you how to do both in this article, but first, here’s some research you should know.

How important are customer communications?

Customer Acquisition

People tend to work with other people and brands they already have relationships with. In fact, per research by Forrester, “Companies that excel at lead nurturing generate 50% more sales ready leads at 33% lower cost.”

In other words, brands who build relationships with prospects – through personalized email marketing, advertisements, and conversations – bring in more customers while reducing their cost per acquisition.

If you want more customers, building relationships is the clear path to success (and to beating your competitors). But the benefits don’t stop there.

According to a study by Aberdeen, nurtured leads – prospects you’ve built relationships with – make 47% larger purchases on average than prospects you haven’t built relationships with.

Customer Retention

Did you know, according to Harvard Business Review, that it can be 5X to 25X cheaper to keep a customer than to get a new one? Or that a 5% increase in customer retention can increase your company’s revenue by up to 95%?

Clearly your existing customers matter. You’ve already invested time and resources into getting these customers, and it’s important to keep growing these relationships, because that’s how both of you get more value from each other.

But how do you keep building on these relationships? By having conversations! And to have conversations, you need conversation starters.

15 Unique Conversation Starters to Drive Customer Communications

We at Text Request are firm believers in starting conversations through text. (Go figure.)

Texting has been the most used form of communication for the last decade, and it’s usually the easiest way to reach people. Perhaps most importantly, texting is how friends and family further relationships.

That said, these conversation starters can all be used in:

Text messages

Personal emails

Email campaigns

Social media posts

Advertisements

Phone calls

And other ways you or your brand might communicate

What’s important is that you create conversations, and whichever channels work for your brand are the ones you should use. Now, let’s dive in!

1. “Can [I/we] help you with anything?”

This conversation starter does several things at once:

It shows you care about the customer

Suggests you can add more value, and

Proves you’re proactive

It can easily fit within your customer success and support processes, too. Just chime in every few months with a quick “Hi, hope you’re well! Is there anything we can help you with?” and your relationships will start growing.

By sparking conversations like this, you’ll also open the door for customers to initiate conversations with you. And since any good relationship is a 2-way street, this adds a lot of value.

2. “Just saw [XYZ], thought you’d appreciate it.”

This is one of the more personable conversation starters you can use, because when you tell someone you were reminded of them, you also tell them 3 other things:

You listened and paid attention during past conversations

They’re not just another number to you, and

Of all the people you know, you thought of them

Hundreds of things grab our attention every day. Something is bound to remind you of another conversation you’ve had. So when one thing reminds you of a customer (in a positive way), share it!

You can send them a text, email, or some other form of message. Your customers will appreciate it, and it will help build relationships that will, in turn, grow your company.

Remember this is a conversation starter. Any promotional message will become more effective when you create room for people to respond, instead of just clicking a link.

When you have something new and exciting going on, use it as an excuse to offer exclusive opportunities for your customers. This will drive conversations, sales, and you relationships!

4. “Congrats on your big day!”

People appreciate recognition, which creates powerful opportunities for your brand to start conversations with customers.

Here are a few special situations where you can reach out to customers. Some can be scheduled in advance, others need more attention, but all are great conversation starters.

Birthdays

Customer anniversaries or milestones

Marriage anniversaries

Professional milestones, like promotions

Recent achievements, like degrees or press coverage

Achievements for customer family members, like graduations or awards

These are the kinds of messages friends and family share with each other to create lasting connections, and they’ll help you grow your customer relationships, too.

5. “What do you think about this?”

How do you feel when someone asks for your opinion or advice? I’d bet you feel pretty good!

This conversation starter both compliments your customer and validates their abilities. It also leads to responses, because everyone wants to share the great thoughts you just complimented them for having.

So when can you ask for opinions?

When releasing new products or features

When you want candid feedback or reviews

And when you want to know customers’ reactions to new ideas

You can’t implement every opinion, but you can use your customers to get candid insight into your products and services.

6. “It’s time to [schedule/renew].”

Depending on the work you do, you might see a customer multiple times a week or only once a year. In any case, it’s best practice to always have a next step or task assigned to each customer.

The task might be to set up their next appointment, renew their contract, or something that’s unique to your business. These check ups and renewals are great conversation starters, because they help you keep a running dialogue with customers that strengthen your relationships.

Plus, they naturally lead to more appointments and longer customer lifetimes, which are always good for business!

7. “What do you think about our new content?”

If you’re following today’s digital marketing basics, then you’re regularly creating and sharing content with your audiences. For those unfamiliar, “content” refers to things like:

Blog posts

Guest articles

Infographics

Social media posts

Downloadable whitepapers, etc.

Every new piece of content is an opportunity to start conversations with your customers. All it takes is an email, text, or push notification saying, “Check out our new content! Let me know what you think about it.”

If any customers have previously requested the info that’s in your new content, you can reach out to those customers personally, too. Doing so proves several things:

You pay attention when customers speak

You implement customer suggestions

You’re a company that keeps adding value

And you appreciate feedback on your attempts to add value

These personal follow-ups are also largely what turn the sentiment from promotional to conversational.

8. “It’s been awhile, wanted to touch base.”

It’s good to have regular conversations with your customers, but, as a business, it can be difficult to keep conversations going. That’s exactly why this conversation starter is so good! Every few months, drop a line:

“Hey [Kim], I wanted to see how you were enjoying the service. Anything we can do for you?”

Or perhaps:

“Hey [Kim], it’s been awhile, and I wanted to check in. How do you like working with us? I want to make sure things are A+, and that we do everything we can for you.”

This conversation starter does 2 things very well.

It makes sure your customers don’t forget about you, and

It shows how much you care

Messages like these also allow you to get feedback early and often from customers, so that you can make changes before something bad happens, like a customer leaving you for your competitor.

In short, this conversation starter helps you avoid this worst case scenario and create better experiences.

9. “We’ll be [close by] on [date], want to grab coffee?

Depending on your business, this conversation starter could play out in 1 of 2 ways.

If you’re a small business with mostly local customers, being “close by” probably means being in the same neighborhood as one of your customers. In this case, you could reach out and say:

Or, if you’re a business with customers all over the nation (or overseas), being “close by” could mean you’ll be in the same metro area for a time. In this case, you might say:

“Hey [John], we’ll be in [Denver] for a conference [the week of the 15th]. Any chance we could get together while I’m out?”

Sure it takes a little effort, but these are great opportunities to strengthen relationships with your customers, and can help you create great memories, too!

10. “Have you tried this [feature/product/option] yet?”

This line is great for starting conversations, and it might be even better at driving usage and sales. Customers are already turning to you for value. So, as opportunities present themselves, why not offer more?

Here are a few situations where you could use this conversation starter:

Encouraging use of a new or untouched feature

Informing customers about other services you offer

Promoting new or different products the customer might like

These messages can boost your customer communications and increase your value per customer. When you’ve got something you think your customers might like, just ask them about it! “Have you tried this yet?”

11. “Would you like to be featured on our site?”

When a business reaches out to feature a customer, a new bond is instantly created. This recognition feels great, and what customer wouldn’t want that?

Featuring a customer can take at least 3 forms, each of which could prove just as valuable as the next.

Case studies

Guest blog posts

And interviews

Case studies should highlight the customer, with why they love your company almost as a side note. You can still include how you solve their problems, but you’ll strengthen relationships by focusing on them first.

Asking a customer to share their knowledge on your site is a surefire way to start helpful conversations, and bring more value to everyone. These guest blog posts should highlight the customer’s expertise, as it relates to your brand and industry.

Interviews could be used for your content, or even for a guest post of your own on some other site! Reaching out to interview customers shows that you value them beyond just a source of revenue.

When you feature customers, they share that content. They share it with their friends and family, and if your customer is another business, they’ll probably share it with their customers, too.

Featuring customers is a great way to build relationships, and to start new relationships with the referrals they bring. So just ask if they’d like to be featured! Most will take you up on it, and they’ll all appreciate the opportunity.

12. “Which is better, A or B?”

When done well, polls can be some of the best conversation starters, both with current customers, and your general audience.

If you release a poll on social media, you could get a tirade of loyalists on both sides defending their preferred choice. And if you poll your current customers about potential company decisions or product features, you could learn what your customers actually want.

In both situations, you’re creating engagement and fostering conversations that lead to stronger relationships with your brand.

People generally want to help, so when opportunity knocks, ask for help!

Some of the best relationships are between mentees and mentors. When you’ve got the option to let one of your customers feel like a mentor, take advantage of it! There are at least 2 places where this can work:

“Hey [Ashley], we’re considering an office space [near you guys]. Can I pick your brain about the area? Thanks!”

“Hey [Mark], we really like working with you, and are thinking about taking a more focused approach to [your industry]. Could you help me learn more about it?”

People love to offer their advice, so use these excuses to start conversations with your customers, and build relationships.

14. “What could we do better?”

We can’t improve unless we get feedback, and who better to give feedback than the people who work with us? This conversation starter does several things:

It shows customers you care

Proves you listen to customers

Brings you quality recommendations, and

Gives you a chance to address complaints

Every customer is interested in making their experiences better. This gives them the chance to do that through communication with your brand, which fosters customer relationships and brand loyalty.

Plus, it takes a lot of honesty to admit you’ve left room for improvement, and most people appreciate that level of candor.

15. “Thought you might like to connect with [So-and-So].”

Relationships are built through conversations, and the goal of networking is to build relationships. This conversation starter bridges the 2 concepts, and allows you to be a connector.

In most industries, your customers become a bank of contacts. So when someone has a need (whether they’re a customer or not), there’s a good chance you know someone else who can help.

You have the opportunity to connect them, which is both a conversation starter and a value add. Here’s an example you might use through email or text.

“Hey [Alan], I know you’re trying to learn more about [the staffing industry], and thought you might enjoy talking to [Alex]. She’s [run her own staffing firm for 10+ years]. Hope you 2 can find time to connect!”

A Final Word

People tend to work with other people and brands they’ve built relationships with, and they tend to spend more as those relationships strengthen.

Conversations are the most powerful tool at your disposal to foster relationships with your customers. And these 15 unique conversation starters give you ample opportunities to drive customer communications that boost your business!

Another popular example is the weekly debriefing. This is something that’s been valuable for us at Text Request, as well as other companies.

Every Monday, we take 20-30 minutes to discuss what happened last week, what’s on the agenda for the coming week, and what we need help with.

These meetings help our team run smoother and faster, because we’re sharing and solving with a clear objective.

What’s the objective?

Before setting up a meeting, you need to know its purpose. What information needs to be shared, and which problems need to be solved?

Instead of meeting to “get everyone on the same page,” only create the meeting if you know what needs to be discussed – like, “how we can increase revenue through content.”

You’re going to get more out of your next business meeting if there’s a valid objective that others can prepare for. Though once you have an objective, you still need to ask whether it warrants a meeting.

Could your meeting be condensed to an email, or even a text?

It’s good to communicate with each other, but that time needs to bring value to everyone. Ask yourself: Would we be better off with an email explaining this situation, or even a text?

Sometimes the answer will be “yes,” and sometimes it will be “no.”

Whenever you can save time and accomplish your goals, everyone wins. But if there’s more to be said that won’t easily fit in an email, or you think it will take a bigger discussion, then feel free to schedule that meeting.

On the other hand, sometimes a person who is directly tied to the subject doesn’t need to be there. You might need to meet with the managers and not the assistants, or just a few people instead of the whole team.

And sometimes the only “business meeting” you need is a simple conversation with 1 or 2 people.

Before scheduling a meeting, think through whom would give or gain the most value, and let the rest keep working.

3. Provide meeting materials early.

Occasionally you need to setup a business meeting on short notice. Normally, though, you have plenty of time to organize and prepare for it. Use this time wisely!

Start by giving attendees plenty of heads up about the meeting. Give them a chance to shift their schedules, re-prioritize to-do lists, or talk to you ahead of time.

You should also provide any meeting materials before the meeting itself. Create and share handouts, presentations, spreadsheets, etc. early so that others have a chance to prepare, too.

When you wait until the meeting to dump all that information on people, you leave them struggling to process what’s going on. This keeps everyone from offering their best, and ultimately holds your company back.

Who wants that?

But when you share details early, everyone gets a chance to prepare, and to come up with questions or comments for discussion. This helps you create more productive and valuable meetings where people are more engaged.

That’s what you want!

If there’s a surprise you want to keep secret, fine. Otherwise, you’ll get more out of your next business meeting by providing people with the tools they need to prepare.

4. Take handwritten notes.

Key to getting more out of your next business meeting is a fully engaged audience. Unfortunately, our awesome digital devices won’t help us here, but a good old fashioned legal pad and pen will!

Instead of typing notes or comments, write them. There are at least 3 benefits:

Respect

If you’re on your phone or computer during a meeting, the person speaking can’t tell if you’re engaged or distracted. And no amount of trust will fix this!

Everyone will get more out of the meeting by staying off phones and computers. It’s a best practice for showing respect to your colleagues, and by removing these distractions, you’ll also be more engaged.

Fewer Distractions

Taking notes on your phone opens the door to “just check something else real quick.” Before you know it, your attention has been stolen, and it can take 25 minutes or more to get it back!

25 minutes is also longer than the recommended length of time to spend on business meetings. So 1 distraction from your phone or computer could make you entirely useless for the whole meeting. Who does that help?

Better Memory Retention

It’s well documented that handwritten notes lead to better retention and performance than typed notes. Sure, it might be a little slower, but that’s what gives your brain a chance to process the information.

If you want to get the most out of your next business meeting, make sure you remember what was said! Taking handwritten notes allows you and others to be more engaged, show respect, and better process the material.

5. Be concise and keep it brief.

Some of the best meetings we’ve had were several hours long, where everyone was engaged and came up with solutions to complex problems. But that’s the edge case for any company.

All of this shows that keeping your business meeting to about 20 minutes is a good plan. Sometimes you’ll need to have longer discussions, but staying concise will keep everyone engaged.

6. Confirm next steps before the meeting adjourns.

It’s easy for a business meeting to end without clear next steps, but most meetings need follow-up, even if everything was “resolved” in the meeting.

Maybe so-and-so needs to finalize a proposal, or you need to talk to someone else, or a manager needs to implement the strategy that was just discussed.

Something needs to happen next, and people tend to forget. What should you do?

Recap and confirm next steps at the end of your meeting. This ensures no one drops any balls, and is an effective step to maximize your meeting value.

7. Follow up with a “thank you” and a debrief.

Anyone worth having in that meeting is worth thanking for their input. Everyone can bring value, and it’s good to let everyone know you value what they bring!

Thanking participants shows you listened, that you care about their input, and motivates people to be more involved in future meetings.

You can thank everyone at the end of the meeting as you confirm next steps, or you can pull people aside and thank them privately later.

You’ll also get more out of you next business meeting if you send a brief email of what was discussed and who’s responsible for next steps. No one will remember everything, and this creates a good reference for the future.

8. Do those next steps ASAP.

There are plenty of reasons to get things done quickly – to propel the company forward, get things off your to-do list, even because you’re excited about the meeting you just had!

The 2 biggest reasons to follow up on these next steps, though, are:

To take and display initiative, and

To motivate others to keep the ball moving

Office dynamics are like dominoes. If you do the best job you can at a great pace, others will, too, and so on. The same dynamic works in reverse if you lag behind.

To get more out of your next business meeting, make sure the meeting isn’t held in vain by getting your follow-up tasks done quickly. In most cases, the sooner you finish, the better off everyone will be!

9. Privately ask for feedback.

The only way to improve is by a process of learning and implementing. We learn where we can improve, and we implement a tactic to get better.

Often, the best sources for learning how to improve our communications are the people we communicate with. So ask! But don’t back them into a corner.

Trying to improve after every business meeting (or every few) is a smart step that will inevitably help you and your team get more out of your next business meeting. If you keep getting better, you’ll keep adding value!

The Finishing Touches

Business meetings have become a controversial topic over the years, with many feeling they’re too constrained and old fashioned.

It’s a shame, because meetings can offer a lot of value with the right technique! And besides, meetings are necessary to any thriving organization, so it’s in our best interest to make the most of them.

That’s what you’ll be able to do through these smart steps. Follow this list, and you’ll definitely get more out of your next business meeting!

Does anyone answer phone calls anymore?

The official answer is: Not really.

As far as trends show, phone calls will always have a place, but people would rather type. There will always be times where speaking is better than typing, but for now the general public says: Why take several minutes to do something that could be done in a few seconds?

There’s plenty of research and opinion as to why answered calls are steadily on the decline. Call it convenience, call it control, call it efficiency. Call it whatever you want, you’re probably right.

The bottom line is that people prefer text, email, and instant message (live chat) over speaking on the phone. Whatever your particular opinion, people tend to view typing as better than speaking. Here are a few reasons why.

Every one of us has been burned by sales calls.

And by unwelcome family conversations. We’re shy of answering calls, because we either don’t know what’s on the other end, or we don’t want what’s on the other end.

Software Advice ran a study with interesting yet unsurprising results. About 10% of adults are willing to answer calls from toll-free numbers. 15% are willing to answer calls from out of town. And still less than 30% of adults are willing to answer unrecognized local numbers.

This doesn’t mean calls to them are answered 10%, 15% 30% of the time. It means that if they aren’t currently occupied, they would be willing to answer, which brings up the next reason no one answers their phone anymore.

People are busy.

Phone calls are often distractions. It’s not that the person calling doesn’t have something valuable worth sharing. They might! But that value can often be given in the form of an email, text, or any other way that doesn’t derail whatever you’re working on.

People spend up to 15 seconds reading an email or text, yet the average phone call is almost 2 minutes. Plus it can take us up to twenty minutes or more to regain focus after being distracted! And we understand this.

Why accept a distraction that could ruin your next half hour? If it’s important, they can leave a message. (Except no one listens to voice mail, either, so it would still need to be typed.)

We generally want to be in control and respected.

We want to dictate our own schedules and tasks, and we want our efforts to be considered. In today’s world, phone calls are inherently presumptive. You call a person when you view your own goals or desires as more important than the goals and desires of the person you’re calling.

The unspoken response is often: How dare you try to undermine my work? When we answer phone calls, we give up control to the caller – something people generally hate to do.

If you’re looking for an exact number of how many calls are answered, there really isn’t one.

There’s no conclusive study freely available (not that we can find, at least). But all the data and trends (probably your own experiences, too) show that people prefer typing to speaking.

Even though phone calls can be valuable in certain situations, people really don’t answer their phones anymore. People really only answer phone calls when they think it will make them more money, or when they want to hear someone special’s voice.

People have found better ways of communicating that keep things under their control while weeding out unwanted solicitors.

Who would you rather work with: the gargantuan company that owns everyone else, or the mom and pop corner shop? Honestly, who would you rather work with? There’s pros and cons to both. The giant corporation definitely knows what they’re doing, but you’ll probably be treated like a number instead of a person. Mom and Pop will treat you like one of their own, but they’re severely limited by comparison. People want to make a bid deal about remaining incredibly personal no matter how big or small your organization is. But, honestly, how much does being personal in business actually matter?

Being personal is amazingly expensive and time consuming. A great case study is Zappos, who’s known for focusing on customer service above all else. There’s a fan favorite story of a Zappos customer service representative spending over 10 hours on the phone with one customer. That phone call cost more than whatever the customer was spending! Is that great customer support or a poor business decision?

It depends on who you ask. For Zappos, that’s exactly what you’re supposed to do. If you’re a logistics company like UPS, whose success is based on efficiency, you’d be fired before that call ended. Is one better than the other, or is it simply different focuses?

Think of how many (large) enterprises automate as much consumer interaction as they can. Clearly they have a good reason for it. They wouldn’t do it if they thought it was bad for business. Smaller companies will often look to emulate larger companies. Should they? There are so many questions surrounding this topic, it’s almost impossible to discern a black and white answer.

All things being equal, people would rather work with someone they can have a relationship with. Why else would politicians shake as many hands as they can find? It’d be far cheaper – far more efficient – to campaign digitally. All other things equal, being personal is a crucial distinguishing factor for a business. It’s so monumental, in fact, that smaller stores use it as their edge to sway clients from using larger, (often) more capable organizations.

There’s no question that if you put money towards being personal, it’s going to pay off. But does it pay off quickly enough or well enough? That depends on you, and how you use what resources are available. Is spending company dollars on being personal going to pay more than spending it elsewhere? Maybe. There’s two question you need to answer first.

Do you have (or hope to have) repeat transactions with any of your customers? If so, then it makes sense to treat them as well as you can, which includes personalization of: communication, promotions and discounts, and recommendations. There’s always going to be a better deal or new feature somewhere else, but customers will stay with you if they’re treated like friends and family. If repeat business (monthly subscriptions, multiple purchases, etc.) doesn’t matter for your operation, then you also need to answer question number two.

A business can offer a great experience without being very personal. By and large, this is why so many massive companies still exist (along with scalability, market share, etc.). It might be more difficult, but it’s certainly possible. If your customer experience is so great that it brings in referrals without being personal, then maybe it doesn’t matter for you. Otherwise, which is more important: making more money, or having your customers think more highly of you?

These two don’t have to be exclusive, but people tend to put their money where they’re priorities are, and the rest doesn’t line up. If you care more about making money, you’ll put more dollars towards sales. If you care more about company admiration, you’ll place more money towards customer service and (maybe) user experience.

Personally, I see more prosperity when an organization puts customers first, where being personal seeps into every aspect of the business. If you go to a hotel, would you rather be treated with smiles and respect, or moved through the line “efficiently”? When choosing an accountant, would you rather go with a giant conglomerate, or the local business who values you as a person? If being personal is your focus, I’m far more likely to recommend you to others.

Plus, word of mouth (personal recommendations and reviews) is one of the largest contributing factors to whether someone purchases. Couple this with the cost of acquiring a new customer. It’s generally 6-7x higher than whatever it costs to keep one current customer happy. Of course, being personal with customers goes hand in hand with keeping them happy.

One last case study that I think paints a great example is Gary Vee. If you’re not familiar with the man, you can check him out here. I alternate between loving and hating the man, but there’s no denying he’s done very well. Watching him over the years, his key to success has been adding value on a very personal level.

When he’s hired to speak, he instead does a Q&A with the audience. He connects with each person individually, and specifically helps them with whatever they’re dealing with. Every answer equals loyalty from the person asking the question. He does the same thing with his #AskGaryVee show, where he fields questions asked to him on Twitter. Gary, his marketing agency VaynerMedia, and the plethora of companies he’s invested in, all grow in part because he spends so much of his time being personal.

Being personal, in many cases, is the hidden secret to explosive growth. You can analyze your budgets and ROIs all day, but people would rather give money to brands they can have legitimate conversations with. Nobody wants to deal with a business whose operation screams “I don’t care about customers, just our bottom line.” Does being personal in business actually matter? It’s paramount.

You're a business. A business is made up of people. People who communicate with each other to get stuff done. Texting helps you get stuff done, often more efficiently than other methods of communication. Internal communication is no exception.

Through our SMS for Business 101 series, we've been walking through a simple, step-by-step guide for implementing texting into your business in a variety of ways. See, we believe that a management solution for texting is the largest void in business communication. That's why we built our platform. But it's bigger than that.

Everyone texts, but no one is really sure how it fits organizationally. That's what we've been helping you learn. We've been giving you the knowledge and expertise you need to simply and quickly implement texting into your business to improve operations.

Your business is made up entirely of people, at least most of whom need to communicate with each other regularly. We have a cornucopia of customers who use our system specifically for internal communication. Here's the gist of why texting works well for them, and in what situations texting is a good choice for internal communication.

Do you ever have employees or teams out in the field? Maybe at a job or site away from your main office? Even when they're away, you still communicate with them. Actually, you probably communicate with them more when they're out of the office. You check in with them for updates or details. They do the same with you. If there's a question or a need for some extra tool or file, you reach out to each other. For all of this, texting works great.

It actually works better than calls or emails because it's so much quicker. Texting doesn't interrupt. If you're in the middle of a conversation with someone else, or engrossed in a project, you won't take a call or email, but you'll read a text real quick. That's typical human behavior. Texting's simpler. It's how people function naturally in 2016. The only thing that's missing is ascribing "texting" as a specified step in your operations.

If you're in the office and simply need to ask a quick question to someone across the hall or in a different corridor, you're not going to walk down to talk face-to-face. If you're a really traditional person, you might email them and wait hours for a response. Or, if you're like most people, you'll just shoot a text and hear back whenever so-and-so isn't tied up in whatever they're working on.

People and businesses communicate like this everyday. The only potential problem is that most of this texting is done from personal cell phones.

I'm sure you trust your employees. I hope you're able to! But all of these employee-to-employee conversations include confidential information (not to mention anytime employees might text with customers and clients). Which means your business is directly responsible for making sure that information is safe and securely held by only your business.

You need a business texting tool. This way, everyone can still have their own line (or as many as you want). They can all use it on their desktop during the work day, if they like. You can always look and see who said what to whom at what time. This way, you have 100% compliance and organizational oversight into your business's communications.

Texting is a tool that people naturally use for internal communication. As a business, you have to be able to handle these communications with compliance. Put two and two together, and the only thing you're missing is something simple to manage it all.

Whereas few emails are opened and fewer phone calls are answered, virtually every text is read. Plus, it’s what people prefer.

So whether you need to follow up with leads, update your current customers, or communicate for any of a million other reasons, texting can help you engage consumers better.

5. Social Media

Social media is what most people think of when they hear “customer engagement.” You think about sharing posts that get likes, comments, and maybe a few more shares.

That’s certainly part of social media engagement, but it’s not the whole picture.

For most businesses, the goal of social media is to add value to other users. The perk of adding value on social media sites is that there are already so many people there!

So how do you add value?

Well, you share blog posts and promotions and other helpful things your target audience would like.

There are all sorts of places like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat, and more where people are actively looking for something to engage with. Why not give them something?

If you do, you’ll be able to get and keep your brand on consumers’ minds. That’s key, because chances are the people viewing your posts don’t need your services right this second – but they will. And when do, you want them to think of you.

Posting on social media, and engaging consumers through all 5 of these types of communication (among others) will help keep your business on people’s minds while growing relationships, and ultimately your bottom line.

Ever wonder how many reasons we come up with to text someone every day? Or how many reasons we come up with just to check our phones?

On average, you and I and everyone else check our phones 150 times each day. That’s an incredible number of times to do anything in a day! But it’s as natural to us as blinking and breathing. (Tweet this!)

We check our phones without even thinking about it, all the time. That’s not a bad thing. I’d actually argue that it’s a good thing!

We use our phones for dozens of reasons every day, from emails to games, social media sites to checking the weather, catching up with friends to news and generally surfing the web.

About 60% of all web traffic comes from mobile devices. The majority of emails are read from a mobile device.

In fact, just between the top three platforms for instant communication – text messaging, Facebook messenger, and WhatsApp – about 80 billion messages are sent everyday! That’s amazing! But it does make you wonder.

If over 80 billion messages are sent every day, what could people possibly be saying? How many reasons could there possibly be to text someone?

Well, there’s plenty! Obviously. Look through your text/IM history, and I’m sure you can find a dozen reasons why you’d text someone as quickly as you could open a message thread.

Whether it’s professional or personal, for business or pleasure, there are countless reasons why you might text someone.

To prove this, our team took out our phones, looked through our text conversations from the past week, and came up with this list of 101 reasons why you might text someone today. Let’s dig in!

You might text someone today…

1. To catch up with an old friend.

Hey Friend, how are you? What’s new?

2. To schedule a meeting.

Does Tuesday at 10am work for you? If not, what about Thursday at 2pm?

There’s not a great chance that any one person is even going to see your email. A good open rate is only 33%, after all. But let’s stay optimistic and assume they opened and read it – they just didn’t reply to your email.

Why not? Here are several common reasons why someone might not reply to your email.

1. Do you know how many emails I get every day?

Seriously, do you? The average person gets just short of 90 emails every day (only about 10 of which are spam). Do you know how many emails they send every day? Less than 40. (Tweet this!)

Keep in mind, this is an average. If you’re trying to get in touch with someone who’s generally busier or holds a more “important” title, it’s going to be more difficult to get a reply.

Would you really expect someone to reply to 90 or more emails every day? Do you know how much time that takes? Don’t take their silence too personally.

2. You wrote way too much (TL;DR).

People generally have short attention spans. That’s why things like comic strips, GIFs, and Snapchat do so well. In fact, people only spend 15-20 seconds reading an email. (Tweet this!)

Since the average reader reads 200 words per minute, you’ve only got 50-65 words to get your message across, or to at least pique their interest. If someone doesn’t reply to your email, you probably just need to be more concise.

3. I didn’t want to buy anything from you.

Most people aren’t looking to buy that one particular product you’re selling at that one specific moment when they read your email. If you have any sales experience, you know it’s a numbers game.

Rather than getting discouraged when someone doesn’t reply to your email, try upping your numbers. Or, maybe people just don’t like sales emails. That’s why the marketer’s battle cry is “Content is king!”

Consumers expect to be given value before they purchase. Instead of asking people to buy first, you might get more people to reply to your email by offering something valuable, like a free ebook or a relevant “fun fact.” (Tweet this!)

4. What you had to say wasn’t important to me.

Relevance is a big deal! And frankly, if you’re not someone who’s trying to give me money, I probably won’t care enough to reply to your email.

People typically prioritize family, work (making money), and pleasure. If your email doesn’t fall into one of those 3 categories, you’re going to have a much more difficult time getting someone to respond.

5. Your email came off rude or blunt.

People have a natural tendency to avoid negativity. And sadly, many sales emails take the approach of “You’re doing something wrong; you need my help.” Who is that good for?

Your email needs to do two things. It needs to make you seem like a genuinely happy person presenting a great opportunity. And it needs to avoid negative words like “not,” “no,” “can’t,” “shouldn’t,” etc.

Stay away from the negative, and focus on the positive. If you stay more positive, more people will read and engage with what you have to say. That means they’ll be more likely to reply to your email, too.

6. Your email sounded like a robot.

Nobody wants to deal with an automated service. If you come across as sounding stiff or too professional, you’re going to turn people off.

Not only is it boring to read, it feels automated. People want to talk with humans, not machines!

If you want people to reply to your email, it will help to avoid giving them any hesitancy towards responding – like thinking you’re just some automated messenger.

7. Your email sounded like a broken record.

Repetition is your enemy. Nobody has time for that! You need to be concise.

You need to say as much as you can in as few words as possible. If you say “check this out” three times within 200 words, the reader is going to think you’re annoying, and probably won’t reply to your email.

Instead of harking on an idea or phrase, or on what you think the reader needs to do, give them helpful information as quickly as possible.

8. You asked me to do too many things.

When you ask a person to do multiple things, you’re increasing their cognitive load and adding to their to-do list.

A person’s working memory usually holds 10-15 seconds worth of information, and they can typically read 200 words per minute (see point 2). That means you have 35-50 words to explain why someone should take that next step. (Tweet this!)

Keep it simple. Make it easy. If you want someone to reply to your email, don’t ask for more than one thing at a time.

9. You didn’t ask me to do anything.

People aren’t going to do anything without a bit of encouragement. You could have the most well crafted message in the world, but if you don’t provide a call-to-action, it’s pointless!

If you don’t give the reader a next step, their reaction will be “OK,” and they’ll move on. What you want is “OK, and now I need to do X.”

10. I was busy when I read it, and forgot about it.

How many times has your spouse asked you to do one thing while you were busy doing something else, and then you completely forgot about it?

People are busy. They have things to do. Plus, their attention is grabbed over 150 times a day by advertisements, 150 times a day for smart phone notifications, and then there’s your email!

Even if your message adds value, it’s reasonable that someone will forget about it as soon as they click away.

11. I didn’t feel like being formal.

Emails tend to be overly “professional” and verbose. It’s usually possible to condense the message of a 200-300-word email into the space of a single text. If you want someone to reply to your email, talk to them like a real person. (Tweet this!)

12. You were trying too hard.

Whether you’re conscious of it or not, people are generally great at understanding how you feel through your tone and syntax. If you’re trying really hard to get the sale, people can tell.

It’s like when you mistakenly answer a sales call. You can tell whether the salesman is nervous about his script or confident in his approach. Similarly, people know when your email isn’t written with confidence.

Being apologetic, overly zealous, or too “understanding” of how busy the recipient is sends a red flag to readers not to trust you. If they don’t trust you, they won’t reply to your email.

13. I wasn’t the right person to talk to.

If I’m not the person you need to reach, I’m just going to ignore you. If you don’t know who to talk to, you probably haven’t had any prior contact with our business.

When people read “could you connect me with the right person,” they often check out. No one wants to be the messenger introducing a random salesman.

14. I didn’t see how responding would benefit me.

What value are you providing? People need to know that interacting with you or responding to your message is going to benefit them in some way.

No one wants to waste their time. If you don’t provide an immediately apparent value, no one will reply to your email.

15. It would take too long to reply to your email.

People value their time more than they value anything else. They don’t want to waste it on something that won’t be helpful. (Tweet this!)

But people will gladly take time for something that will free up more time for them later. You have to prove that you’re worth their time, and that you’ll be able to give them more of it.

What’s the solution?

All in all, people don’t enjoy emails like they used to. Emails aren’t as bad as voice mail, but people get so many of them every day! Truthfully, if you want to reach more people and get replies more often, you need to text with your prospects.

99% of text messages are read, and they have a 45% average response rate. What would that do for your ratios? (Tweet this!)

These days, people prefer quick and simple communication. That’s why tweets, texts, and social media direct messages have become so popular.

There’s always something you can do to improve your emails. But it’s safe to say that one reason people didn’t reply to your email is simply because you sent an email. Why not try texting?

Also, when someone doesn’t answer your call, it’s probably easier to leave a voice mail than to hang up and text them. You’re already on the call!

But that’s not what most people want to do.

Simply put, texting is just how people communicate these days. If that doesn’t resonate with you (or even if it does), here are 5 reasons why people – particularly Millennials – prefer texting over voice mail.

1. Voice mail usually takes too long.

Often, the voice mail we get come with more annoyances than solutions. On the off chance there’s something valuable, we turn off the message before it stops playing to either text or call the person back.

Voice messages aren’t exactly full-length speeches, but the little bit of extra time it takes to get a small piece of information makes us want something different.

2. Voice mail is impersonal.

Who are the people that normally leave voice mail?

There’s your mother – maybe your grandmother – who rambles on about how she “just wanted to check in and see how things are.” There’s the client you’re not very close with asking you for something. And there’s the salesman calling back for the umpteenth time.

When someone close to you wants to get in touch, they either message you on social media or text you. So when you see a voice mail, you know the person who left it is outside your normal communications circle.

At that point, why bother communicating with the person at all?

3. Voice mail can be difficult to hear.

How often are you around other people? How many times have you been self-conscious about others overhearing your calls and voice messages, or had to leave a room because it was too loud?

Texting is just easier.

How many times have you had to replay a voice message to understand what was said, or to write down a number? This is a hassle, and text messaging provides a simple solution.

4. Voice mail still makes you write a message.

A message should be something given to you that you can instantly run with, not something you have to replay three times and take notes on before it’s worth anything.

If somebody texts you, you already have a written record of everything you need to know, and the best number to reach that person. You can also keep an unlimited number of texts saved, instead of needing to empty your voice mailbox every so often.

5. Voice mail carries no urgency.

If it’s not urgent, people are going to forget about it. If someone can’t answer your call, there’s good (perhaps better) chance they won’t be able to listen to your voice mail soon either.

But most texts are read within 3 minutes, and you can choose whether to pay attention to that message immediately or leave it for later.

Voice mail was great back in the day, but it’s not how we like to communicate anymore. And according to Coca-Cola and JP Morgan Chase, it causes more problems than it solves!